I'm Just Livin' the Dream!

Hey,



My name is Spencer Duke. I am an intern in Paralympics (THE best department in the complex) where I work with Community Programs. Though I anticipated having a great experience, I have been shocked with how much I like both the work and the people. It has been really busy, but that's great when you enjoy what you are doing. I'm from Edmond, Oklahoma where I attend the University of Central Oklahoma. Were it not for this great opportunity, I'd be finishing up my junior year as an Exercise and Fitness Management major. I am also a student athletic trainer in the Broncho Athletic Department. (Go Bronchos!)

As I said, I work with Community Programs in the Paralympics department and I consider it the best on complex. We have lots of great things happening. I am currently involved with the Paralympic Experience Vancouver which is an event where we take students and leaders with physical disabilities to the Paralympic Games in Vancouver. I’m also working on the Developing Amazing Leaders Conference which will be held here in Colorado Springs towards the end of my internship.



I can't believe I've written two paragraphs without mentioning how much I LOVE COLORADO. I've been able to experience many new things that simply are not possible in Oklahoma. During our first weekend here, a couple of my fellow interns and I headed out to visit the Garden of the Gods. I had never seen anything like it before and was amazed with the crazy rock formations that I saw. We spent a couple hours hiking the trails and climbing our way up the rocks which was pretty cool.



Shortly after I began the internship, I heard people talking about "The Incline." Being new to the area, I had no idea what they were talking about and soon learned that it was pretty much a big set of stairs on the side of a mountain. I was told it was something that I had to do so my roommate and I decided to give it a shot during our second weekend in Colorado. We thought we'd walk up the stairs to enjoy the view. I heard the warning but never really believed we had anything to worry about. We're both in decent shape, or so I thought we were.



We arrive at the base of the incline and decided we were going to take it slow. Still, we wanted to see what our time would be. We started a timer and began our trek up the incline without a care in the world. 3 minutes later we took our first break. I knew then that we were in way over our heads. My legs were burning, I was already breathing hard, and our adventure had just begun. People began to pass us and we would ask them how much longer it would take until we got to the top, and most of the times we were met with laughs and them saying “You’re saying that now? This is the easy stuff.” We were not pleased, but we pressed on.

As we got higher, it got colder. And people began to pass us at a much quicker rate. We had gone from going 3 minutes between breaks to taking a break every 20-30 seconds. When we stopped, it was no longer just getting a swig of water and catching our breath. Instead we were practically collapsing onto anything we felt safe enough to sit on. One minute breaks to catch up on our breathing became five minute survival periods. We began mapping out our breaks.

After over an hour of this, we finally reached the top. We were thrilled and both of us talked about how that was the hardest thing we had ever done. We took a couple of minutes to enjoy the amazing view. Words don't do justice, so I won't even try. Suffice it to say that we could see everything for many miles to the east and Pike's Peak to the west. We decided to take the long way down on the Barre Trail which was actually pretty cool. The trail was somewhat icy in spots but was a nice change of pace after we nearly killed ourselves on the way up.

So I survived the incline and have many more things planned. I want to ski/snowboard for the first time. My 21st birthday will be happening soon. My girlfriend, Stacey, will get to come out and visit. The 2nd Intern Olympics will be taking place (I guarantee a win for Team Number Four!). And all the while I get to work on behalf of some of the most inspiring athletes in the world.




This opportunity has already been a life changing blessing and I get to do it for four more months. Sweet!

Spencer Duke
Paralympic Community Programs
Colorado Springs OTC